# Shifting Sands: First Glimpse



## Kali the Flygon (May 9, 2010)

OOC thread here

It was a warm, bright Monday morning in late spring. There was hardly a cloud in the sky over the University of Central Hoenn. The campus was relatively large, some 30,000 students, faculty, and staff, and a campus that spanned nearly half a square mile in area. But today, the campus was relatively empty. Final exams for the spring semester were now over, and most of the students in the dorms had left for their homes across the continent. However, there were some people who did have reason to remain back at the campus. 

Outside the Biology and Biochemistry building, an intentionally archaic-looking building that was actually quite modern in its design, a small charter bus idled, parked out on a small street. But just inside the building was where this story was to begin. Six letters of acceptance had been sent out to six young scholars, signaling a meeting time and place - 8:00am today, in the lobby of the building. The plans were all set, and as the clock neared the hour, it would only be a matter of time now.


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 9, 2010)

_Just great._

The aging man sighed and ran a hand through his peppery brown hair. It wasn't receding as of yet, thank God, but it could happen at any time. Especially with his position, keeping up with a bunch of twentysomethings with nothing to lose. In a desert, this time. 

_Oh joyous day_ Saguaro thought, even managing a sarcastic smile to go with the thought. At least this trip would be interesting, going into the great unknown of the Desertlands; last time he had gone to 'study the effect of damp environments on Croagunk with differing abilities'. As it turned out, there was absolutely no effect at all and it was one big waste of the University's grant money (and Blaise's time).

The good Doctor stepped out of the University's B&B Wing and squinted in the sunlight, pulling out a pair of dark sunglasses and slapping them onto his face. He eased himself onto a mosaiced bench the art students had made and hummed a tune from his childhood.

Damned grad students were never on time.


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## Patar (May 9, 2010)

_Stupid Hoenn clocks_

A young man walked out a nice looking house and began to walk to the bus stop, sighing. Just why did we have to leave? Hoenn's nice but Sinnoh's the best with Cynthia and all the elders. But always her, moving around and crap. And the desert now? _At least, I'll be away from her._ Dirk thought.

The bus came and he boarded, sitting next to an old woman. "Don't look so depressed, hon! Wherever you're going, I'm sure something will please you!" the woman said with a smile. "Thank you, ma'am. I'm sure the same will happen with you too." he replied. Maybe things weren't going to so bad after all. Getting off the bus, he saw a middle aged man sitting on the bench, sleeping. _Whatta ya know. Must be him._


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## Green (May 9, 2010)

The young man was dashing now, hurrying to be on time. Behind him a large blue alligator ran too, so as not to look bad in their professor's eyes. Chris was always unorganized - papers to and fro as he ran, nearly avoiding being late to classes all his life. 

_Crap oh crap oh crap._ he thought as he saw the dull yellow bus nearing with each step. Finally he reached the building, where a slightly angered old man stood.

"So you're..."


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## ClockworkJB (May 9, 2010)

Unaware of the exact time, but certain that he was a going to be late, Bryan had taken the short way to the Biochem wing. Still, he was in no hurry to arrive before any of the other students, his pace slow and measured. A tall, thin boy, he had to duck beneath some of the lower branches that overhung the path. It was a little used route, walled off on one side by a lecture theater and on the other by a small grove of evergreens.

He kept his hands in the pockets of his jeans, his back bent slightly under the weight of his travelling pack. At his mother's insistence, he wore a wide brimmed hat, which did nothing to hide his messy mass of mousey brown hair. The brim slouched at the front, just inside his field of vision, much to his chagrin, and he had half a mind to send it spinning into the nearest refuse can.

The path wound around to end at the adjacent side of the building referred to in the letter (OOC: thanks for giving it a name, Kali =P). Rounding the bend, Bryan was surprised to find only two people in front of it.


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## Coloursfall (May 9, 2010)

Anne took large strides as she neared the large building, her long orange hair bouncing haphazardly behind her as she went. She was a tall and slender girl, with a pretty good figure and a million freckles all over her face and upper arms, and pale blue eyes.  She was dressed rather plainly; a pair of blue jeans (tight but not too much so to show off too much figure), running shoes, and a pale pink tee-shirt with a red heart on the centre. She had a messenger bag slung over one shoulder. 

 A small brown fox trailed close behind her, hopping happily at her owner's heels, a bit grin on her furry brown face. The Eevee took a running leap and landed gracefully on her owner's arm, churring and curling around her neck like a scarf. Anne smiled; such a cute little thing. 

She turned her attention back on the building; she ignored the bus for now, and instead drew a neatly folded piece of paper from the rear pocket of her jeans. She read it over again - it must have been the ninth or tenth time now - then slid it back in the pocket.  This was it. She locked her eyes on the small gathering of people, and approached, head held high.

"Hello everyone. My name is Anne, and this is Bast," she said, motioning to the Eevee around her neck.


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## Sylph (May 10, 2010)

"Seems I'm a tad late to the party."

A tall slender man walks over to the group, his long black hair tied back in a streigth pont at the base of his neck. He slipped his hands into the pockets of his skinny jeans, letting out a soft breath as his partner Titan perched onto his back. He glances at the Gliscor, a soft look in his pale green eyes. He then looks back at the group before him, walking over to them confidently.

"Sorry for the lateness. I was...held up a tad when coming here."

He slipped a hand out of his pocket and motioned toward the dorms a bit off, chuckling under his breath.

"Seemed a few of my female co-eds wanted a word with me. Oh well, that mess is done for now...so. When do we ship out."

His eyes then slide to the lone girl wearing pink, a brown fox around her neck. He smiles charmingly at her, holding out his hand to her.

"Why hello there, aren't you a picture."


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 10, 2010)

_-curds and whey
There came a big Spinarak
which crawled right on to 'er back
And frightened Miss Muffet a-

_"So you're...?" said a young man, chest heaving. He was accompanied by an alligator of ferocious size, whos was also apparently breathing quite heavily. Didn't the student know that Feraligator were only fast over short distances?

The doctor cleared his throat and responded,"Yes, I'm Doctor Saguaro. It's nice to have you aboard, young man." Blaise looked around, surprised to see that a number of youngsters had appeared while he was waiting.

There was a confident-looking young man with a Gliscor perched on his person, apparently trying to charm a youngeer woman who was wearing an Eevee as a scarf. Strange, but Saguaro had once been to a part of Kanto where people wore nothing but Tangela on certain holidays. The doctor shuddered at the thought.

There was another young man, who looked noticeably like his niece... so _this_ was his fabled grandnephew. An herbalist or something, he thought. What _was _his name? Dick or something.

Blaise did a quick headcount, checking to see how many underlings he now had at his disposal. Only four...

"Well, I sure hope the last signer-up gets here soon, or else he'll be left behind," the aging man said, running a hand through his salt-and-peppered brown hair. It was going to be _hot_ in the desert.

"So, while we wait, let's introduce ourselves!" the doctor exclaimed with forced cheerfulness; this would be interesting. The shy ones would be put on the spot, and the more open students would be made to feel like gradeschoolers.


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## Wargle (May 10, 2010)

_Perfect._ Nate thought. _ten minutes late. Way to go. Objective 'Good First Impression' failed._

Nate was flying back into Hoenn after visitinga relative in Orre. _Stupid Cipher, delaying flights with a bomb scare_

Finally he landed in Slateport and rode a bike to Mauville. He saw the huge university, with a few students and a professor outside.

"Sorry I'm late. No excuse this time. Got to save them for later" he smirked. "I'm Nathaniel, call me Nate" he said extending a had to the man.


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## ClockworkJB (May 10, 2010)

Failing to supress a snort at the young man with the Gliscor's blatant showboating, Bryan instead burying his head in his leaflet, his grin hidden by the brim of his hat.

Saguaro's invitation for introductions seemed like as good an excuse as any to break the ice, though he noted a hint of exasperation under the doctor's cheerful demeanor.

"Bryan Snow, English Literature student", he said, smiling warmly.


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## Coloursfall (May 10, 2010)

Anne flashed a smile at the Gliscor boy, but didn't say anything to him.  Instead, she stroked Bast's mane and listened to a few others introduce themselves. Seemed she was the only girl on this trip.  She scratched Bast behind the ears and drew her into her arms.  When there was a pause after two boys had said their bits (she mentally filed their names away so she could remember them), she stepped forward.

"My name is Anne Jones, as I said.  I'm a Pokemon Biology expert. I specialize in evolution and breeding. That bit in the Pokemon Breeder's Journal a few months back about egg groups? That was mine," She said, as cool as a cucumber.

Though, she had to admit, the old guy was pretty intimidating.  She had never been very good with dealing with older guys.


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## Sylph (May 10, 2010)

Adrian shrugged and withdrew his hand, turning his attention back to the Old Man that was running this adventure. He nodded his head to the old man, giving him a smile as well as he crosses his arm over his chest in a slight bow of sorts.

"I am Adrian. I'm what you may call a Archaeologist, which is the result from my studies. I do hope we find something interesting out in the desert lands, hate to go through all this and find nothing but sand and Cacturne."

Titan closed her eyes and sighed, jabbing Adrian's side with her stinger. She then looks at the Professor and gives him a look that plainly said "I'm sorry for him."

"Ouch. Titan, no jabbing. I was only expressing a concern."

At this point, both pokemon and student have their conversation with one another, one defending themselves while the other only scolds him with a look and the waving of their arms.


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## Patar (May 10, 2010)

Dirk stretched out and yawn for a bit. 

"Hmm? I guess I'm last to introduce myself. Dirk. I guess I'm playing doctor for this trip," Dirk looked around at the faces. Half of them seemed bored, not knowing what to do and the professor just looked pissed but trying to hide it. But each one seemed to hide something. Something important. 

The one with the Gliscor seemed a little smug. The late one's probably a jerk. The English Lit. dude seems okay. The girl is probably one of those stuck up know it alls. But the professor. He's weird yet he knows something...

"So what's supposed to happen now?"


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 10, 2010)

_Girl's a tad smug. Then again, that article _was_ pretty decent. Hope the boy doesn't keep us up with his Glisc-_

"Oh, what? Well once the other guy gets here then we can..." It was at this point that Saguaro noticed that the missing member of their group had arrived. And he was currently holding his hand out to the man. The ecologist raised his right eyebrow, looking at the hand like it was a Starly in the middle of Littleroot.

He grudgingly and briskly shook the boys hand, adjusted his sunglasses, and clapped his hands together in half-fake excitement. It _was_ exciting, though, finally heading off to explore the great sandy expanses of Hoenn's desert.

"All right, then, all on the bus. We've got a schedule to keep!" Without a further word, the Professor strode toward the bus, climbing up the steps and sitting in the very front.


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## Sylph (May 10, 2010)

Adrian finally rolls his eyes and breaks the argument with Titan. He turns to watch the old man climb onto the bus. He judged the size of the bus, fishing out Titan's ball to return her so she wouldn't get stuck in the door. He then smooths down his coat and walks onto the bus. He swung into a seat and stares from the window, Titan's ball warm in his palm.

_This should be interesting._


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## Patar (May 10, 2010)

_Hmm. Don't wanna seem like a loser. Better talk to some people._

Dirk began to walk over to the bus but walked slowly. He sort of drifted over to Anne. "Hey, you're a Pokemon Biologist, right? I've always wondered about this but does the egg in Blissey's pouch ever hatch or what does it contain?"

Her Eevee was cute. It seemed content, wrapped around her neck like a scarf.


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## Wargle (May 10, 2010)

Nate frowned. _He seems a little slow, and he hides his emotions. Not good. Not good that I am judging his mind right now._

Nate climbed into the bus and went to the very back and set on the right, (Non-driver) side, near the window. We withdrew a Pokéball from his bag. He stared at it and pushed the button. It popped open and revealed the resident. A yellow vaugely human-shape and size creature with brown 'armour' in places. It had a large moustache and held two spoons, the right one twisted (He is holding the item TwistedSpoon if you didn't catch on). An Alakazam. Alakazam stared at Nate. He seemed a mix 80% disappointment and 20% disgust with Nate. "I take it you heard or sensed what happened." he asked Alakazam. The Alakazam nodded. Nate sighed. "Great, I made a bad first impression and everyone probably hates me or misjudges me now."


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## Kali the Flygon (May 10, 2010)

As the professor stood up and walked to the small charter bus, the front doors opened out, giving people entryway. A short, stocky middle-aged man sat at the driver's seat, with slightly tanned skin, and balding, graying short black hair, with thick eyebrows, a large, thick mustache, and no beard except for the rugged 'haven't shaved in a day because I'm too lazy' look. A large map of the Central Hoenn region sat nestled between his inherent pot-belly and the large steering wheel, and a half-eaten powdered doughnut was being held in his left hand as he held the lever that opened the door with his right. The man turned to the incoming passengers, particularly Dr. Saguaro, and gave a bit of a smile as he swallowed a piece of his doughnut. "Mornin peeps..." he greeted them, in his low, gruff voice, sounding rather unenthusiastic. A name tag, reading "Mr. Conway" was visible on his chest.

After Dr. Saguaro was seated behind the driver, and Mr. Conway quickly finished his doughnut, he held up his map over his shoulder to show the professor. "So, we're headed to this little town well north of the city, right? The name of 'Tamany Town', out on the edge of the desert?" He points to a spot on the map just out into the desert. Remarkably, although most of the area on the map is given in great detail, there appears to be little there, and no actual roads going further... just replaced by the words 'Hoenn Desert'.

The bus itself was not very big, maybe only with 5 rows deep, with two benches each except for the back row, which had a single, long bench, so a maximum of 21 passengers and a driver would be able to fit. However, since there were to be so few actual passengers, people would find enough room to easily go one person per bench, and even many of them could let their Pokemon sit with them, though the larger Pokemon would have trouble.


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## Green (May 10, 2010)

Chris took out a worn Poke Ball from his pocket and retracted his Feraligatr into it as he boarded the bus. He searched somewhat pathetically for an empty seat, finding one a minute later. He slinked down and finally relaxed, taking a a small silver iPod out of his pocket and selecting his favorite song as he stuck his hands in his jacket pockets. He had always had that tan jacket and silver iPod. Nothing much had changed in the past 13 years for Chris. Even his low voice remained unweathered by maturity...


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 11, 2010)

Doctor Saguaro shook his head in a sort of resigned annoyance. Literally _thousands_ of trainers, breeders, and so forth ad nauseum traipsed about the region, cutting paths and making maps of the whole continent, and there was _still _a humongous sand-colored stain on nearly every map in Hoenn. 

"Yes, that's the place," he said to the busdriver offhandedly, more interested in the device a boy had just pulled out. He remembered hearing or reading something about thousands of songs, and that just didn't make sense; No one person knew or liked thousands of songs, and from what Blaise had seen they weren't generally used communally.

To occupy himself, Saguaro pulled a worn, minimized Repeat Ball from his sock. Enlarging it, he pulled out a piece of microfibered cloth and began rubbing the Pokéball, breathing on it first. Sadly, he couldn't release his old frien on the bus, as Blastoise don't do well on vehicles and Tortuga was too large anyway.


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## ClockworkJB (May 11, 2010)

Bryan immediately moved for a seat as far to the rear of the bus as possible. Settling into the window seat, he pulled a battered, purple Game Boy form his pack and immediately became oblivious to the outside world.


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## Coloursfall (May 11, 2010)

Anne smiled at the boy who talked to her, flipping a bit of orange hair behind her shoulder. Oh, thank goodness he had asked about her work...she never know how to deal with questions about her personal life. She stroked Bast for a moment and considered his question. 

"Well, from what I've seen, it's a form of...condensed energy, if you will. They use it to heal other Pokemon, isn't it fascinating?" She said happily, hopping towards the bus. "Come on!"

She boarded quickly, slipping into one of the mid-bus seats, draping an arm over the back of the seat. She was just in front of the flirty boy from before, but didn't really pay him much attention.


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## Patar (May 11, 2010)

"Uh sure."

But Dirk was more unsure about the girl. She's smart and all but why the enthusiam now with egg question? _She's different all right._ he thought. Seeing her skipping to the bus, he trailed behind her seeing that he was indeed last again. The wholebtrip seemed kinda fake to him. A single girl. A cocky boy with attitude. A wacky professor. Sounds like a reality TV show or something.

Getting onto the bus, Dirk saw that there was an empty seat across from that girl Anne. But then he saw the flirt behind her. Normally Dirk wouldn't even dare to interfere with another guy trying to get a girl. But Anne was different. Didn't seem like she wouldn't fall for his "tricks".

"Hey I happen to have my Blissey. Do wanna like examine it or something?"


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## Kali the Flygon (May 11, 2010)

Seeing that everyone from outside had climbed aboard, Mr. Conway closed the bus door. "All right, peeps, take your seats and we'll be on our way," he announced, shifting out of park. The bus began to creep forward at first, but soon was moving normally.

The bus ride itself wasn't too exciting. At first, the scenery was mainly heavily urban, with buildings... and traffic... all around, but as the bus travelled on the main route north, Route 111, things started to switch to a more country setting. Trees now lined the road, instead of buildings. A large, gorgeous estate a few miles out of the city was passed, but other than that, very few people actually could be seen living a considerable distance from Mauville. There were a few small towns on the way, but the spacing was becoming fewer and farther between. Slowly, as the bus travelled north, the ground around them appeared to become not only more rocky and mountainous, but also more arid and dry. Grass still covered the ground for the most part, but it became thinner, more sparse, and existed more in clumps  and bushes. The route became somewhat more windy and less traveled, twirling between hills and mountains. 

Finally, though, the group made it to Tamany Town. The place appeared to be a small, rural farming village, maybe only with 100 people or so, surrounded by livestock ranches. A small stream passed by town, providing just about all the water available to the place. The ground looked mostly like a barren wasteland, with only a couple bushes of desert grass scattered across the place, except for the irrigation fields provided from the stream. All in all, the bus ride took about two hours from Mauville, maybe nearly a hundred miles north. At this town, Route 111 seemed to just stop at a dead end, maybe half a mile north of where Route 112 west began. It appeared as if it was intended to continue further north, but a northern connection was never completed. The terrain past the town only seemed to get more sandy as opposed to rocky.

As the bus came to a stop, a man outside walked up toward the vehicle. He appeared to be darker, short and thin, with a pointy beard and a long, thin mustache. The man waved to the group, and Mr. Conway opened the door to let people out, turning back to Dr. Saguaro to ask for his fee.


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 12, 2010)

"Hmm? Oh, yes, that's right, your payment. Give me a moment," the doctor trailed off, patting his myriad of pockets to locate his wallet. He was about to search his satchel when his memory returned; Saguaro reached around to his back pocket and pulled out a worn, faux-leather wallet. As he opened it, there was a flash of an old photograph, of a smiling young boy in his early teens, standing next to a Wartortle who had obviously been startled by the camera's bright light. Little more than a second later, the picture was whisked away, replaced by a stack of bills emblazoned with the symbol for Poké.

"That should just about do it. Thank you for your services, Mr. Conway," The doctor shook the driver's hand and shuffled away, off of the bus, to meet up with their mysterious guide.

"Pleased to see you in person, Mr. Alamai. I'm glad that you could be our guide," said Doctor Saguaro. He turned on his heel towards the bus and cupped his hand to the side of his mouth. 

"Come on, out of the bus, come meet or guide for the trip!"


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## Patar (May 12, 2010)

Dirk had a small conversation on the bus with the Biology girl but chose to sleep most of the ride. He awoke as the professor had been calling out, "Come on, out of the bus, come meet our guide for the trip!"

Dirk stretched and began to walk to the front of the bus to see the tour guide. The guide was... pretty boring actually. He was stout and had dark skin. His pointy goatee  and his thin wire mustache gave him a look that said, "Grr..." He didn't seem mean at all though. You could tell that he loved his job and enjoyed it. But he did seem a little suspicious. Dirk shrugged. He couldn't be that bad. Could he?

"Hello, sir. My name is Dirk Palm. Nice to meet you."


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## Wargle (May 12, 2010)

Nate climbed out of his seat and walked up the aisle. Alakazam floated behind him, however, he was deep in thought. He saw their guide. He was short, had a pointy beard and and thread-like moustache. One member -Dirk, he thinks- was already greeting him. Nate decide to join in.

"Hello sir, Nate Kouze." he said, he was about to offer a handshake, but remembered how the good Doctor reacted. He glanced back at Alakazam. Still meditating, be he opened one eye, then the other, signifying he had finished. However, he remained levitating as he examined the area and then the man. Alakazam seemed to be feeling distrust but the man was a stranger. It was expected.

((It appears the forums ate one of my posts. I made a post but it disappeared. It was delving into Nate and Alakazam's backstory. Complete with flashbacks. but it was nommed. D: ))


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## Kali the Flygon (May 13, 2010)

"Please, you give me far too much credit, Dr. Saguaro," Mr. Alamai replied, with a heavy accent, chuckling a bit. "I am merely a businessman. You are in need of certain goods, and I am willing to provide them, for the right price, of course. You requested 7 Camerupt? I have plenty in stock, but I do not rent. Instead, I agreed to sell you the Camerupt. If within 3 months you bring any back, and in healthy condition, I agree to buy them back, at half the original price. You can consider the difference to be your 'rent'." His smiling expression, however, suddenly got a little more serious. "As for being your guide, no, that is not something I agreed to. I agreed to help you... get used to the desert conditions, but that is all. You know I do not agree with your plans, Doctor... you threaten to awaken the Spirit of the Desert, and incite her wrath, and I will not be around when that happens. You understand, I have my own business to take care of instead."

After a brief pause, though, Mr. Alamai then grinned once again, chuckling. "But please, come, all of you... You are my guests, so it would be rude of me not to offer refreshments. I will show you my home and treat you to lunch, and then I will let you see my selection. " He waved to the group, as he began to walk off. "This way! Come!" The man started walking toward a ranch at the top of a small hill, and on the way, Numels and Camerupts could be seen in a large enclosure to each side of the sandy, rocky path to his home.

The busdriver, meanwhile, waited for everyone to get out, and called out to the doctor, "You know the number for our service... just give us 24 hours notice, and we'll be happy to pick you up and take you back to Mauville." He closed the door to the bus, and began to drive off.


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## Sylph (May 13, 2010)

No sooner had Adrian stepped off the bus, it is close it's doors and sped away. He dusted his coat off of the dirt that flew from the bus's wheels and moved to join the others in the trip. He fished Titan's ball from his pocket and released her, letting her cling to his back and hitch a ride.

He caught the tail end of the discussion, something to do with "Waking the Spirit of the Desert" and  invoking her wrath. He looks at his nails and smiles a bit.
_
This will be interesting. Glad I came along..._


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## Patar (May 13, 2010)

What the hell? Dirk had heard a lot of the conversation and didn't like it at all. First we would be wandering around a frickin desert without any guide or help or anything. And getting used to the conditions? What, we're gonna be thrown into the desert and see how long we live?

And what the heck is this Super Spirit or something? "Mr. Alamai, what is this Great Spirit you speak of?"


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## Blastoise Fortooate (May 13, 2010)

Saguaro smirked slightly at the melodrama that had permeated the air not a moment before. Although he wasn't one to discount spirituality off the bat, the doctor frankly thought that if there was some sort of vendetta-driven consciousness in the desert that it shouldn't be called the 'Great Spirit'. Such a cliché, the original name was probably much more interesting.

But who cared? The kind man had sold them Camerupt at a good price, and was their guide/aquaintor-to-the-desert to boot. A good team of Camerupt was invaluable in the desert, as they were highly resistant to the desert heat; they also kept thheir riders warm at night and lit the way. 

The ecologist stuck his hand in his pocket and trudged after the man, smile still a ghost on his face.


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## Wargle (May 14, 2010)

((asdfg the forums ate another post. It was mostly just about Nate going 'WHAT!!??' and getting a special bond with one Camerupt. As I have no time now, I cannot repost it.))


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